This invention relates to a transporting vehicle provided with a trailer particularly suitable for transporting heavy materials such as concrete units used for constructing a building.
Among a variety of conventional transporting vehicles for transporting goods and commodities is known a traction-type transporting vehicle suitable for transporting bulky heavy materials. This transporting vehicle is comprised of a tractor carrying an engine and a trailer connected with this tractor. Since the trailer is connected with the tractor rotatably about a vertical shaft, the tractor and the trailer are relatively rotated about the vertical shaft with respect to each other when the transporting vehicle approaches a curve while being running, thereby enabling a deviation of traces of inner wheels to be reduced. Accordingly, the transporting vehicle can run on normal public roads even if it is slightly longer, and proves convenient and useful in transporting bulky cargoes.
It has been considered to improve a loading capacity by elongating the trailer of the above transporting vehicle. The length of the conventional transporting vehicle is set at a maximum length which enables the transporting vehicle to run on normal public roads without any problems. Thus, even if the loading capacity may be improved by elongating the transporting vehicle, it becomes difficult for the transporting vehicle to run on narrow roads other than wide main roads or highways.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a transporting vehicle which is free of the above problems residing in the prior art.
According to an aspect of the invention, a transporting vehicle comprises a tractor and a trailer to be hauled by the tractor. The trailer is constructed by a first trailer unit connectable with the tractor and a second trailer unit detachably connectable with the first trailer unit, and a connecting mechanism provided at mutually opposed connecting sections of the first and second trailer units for integrally connecting the first and second trailer units while a rear end of the first trailer unit and a front end of the second trailer unit are held in contact with each other.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon a reading of the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.